Ohio State AD Gene Smith says FBS leagues could soon operate under their own rules
By Adam Spencer
Published:
Ohio State AD Gene Smith is a trusted voice in the world of college athletics. When he speaks, people listen.
This week, during Big Ten spring meetings, Smith said something that will raise the eyebrows of many around college football.
Per ESPN, Smith suggested that the FBS leagues operate under their own umbrella, away from the NCAA:
Smith, who said he was “just throwing ideas out” in a brief interview with ESPN at the Big Ten spring meetings, said the schools that offer 85 scholarships “need different rules.” He said they could create minimum standards for membership.
“We [can] create our own rules, create our own governance structure, have our own enforcement, we have our own requirements, whatever that might be,” Smith said. ” … That might be in the medical space, for example, if a student-athlete is injured and hurt in his or her senior year. You take care of them when they’re done until they’re healed. And we have the funding in place to do that. You don’t touch anything else with the NCAA. You keep the academic requirements in place. The reality is, those schools who offer 85 scholarships in football have made a different commitment and that needs to be addressed.”
Smith also said the current College Football Playoff model needs to be evaluated:
“The CFP model needs to be looked at differently,” Smith said. “As we consider expansion, we ought to consider the structure. The reality is we need to begin to control our own space. We’ve got to make sure we’re careful with antitrust, but at the end of the day, we need different rules.”
Could a split from the NCAA be coming soon? Things seem to be heading in that direction.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
